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Two thirds (67
per cent) of IFAs say the ongoing stock market volatility has spurred
their clients into changing the way they plan for their retirement,
according to research by MetLife Europe Limited (MetLife).
33 per cent say their clients are opting for cash primarily, but
21 per cent say guaranteed pension products are now top of the list
for their clients. A further 13 per cent say that despite the weakening
market, clients are switching into other assets such as property.
Nearly half of IFAs (45 per cent) have found that their clients
are increasingly asking for advice on alternatives to traditional
and drawdown annuities, including 16 per cent who say clients ask
primarily about pension products with unit-linked guarantees or
variable annuities, and 29 per cent cite with-profits annuities
and impaired life annuities as the most popular options.
Dominic Grinstead, strategic development and marketing director
at MetLife, commented: “Stock market volatility and growing
worries about inflation are raising the uncertainty that clients
and advisers face. So it is no surprise that pensions with unit-linked
guarantees are becoming more attractive as an alternative to traditional
pension products – they address inflation by facilitating
exposure to equities, which have an in-built defence against price
rises in the long run, and protect pension pots against stock market
falls.”
- Pensions Age
July 2008
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